


Twice Shy

by FableButt



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Coran is the literal best both in the present and the future, Gratuitous Love Octagons, Hunk and Pidge don't give a shit about your relationship drama, Lots of Cursing, Multi, Oblivious Allura, PINING KEITH, Teenage Drama Bullshit, They just want to figure out whats going on, Thinly Veiled Plot, Time Travel Shenanigans, in denial Lance, kids fic, pining shiro
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-11-23
Updated: 2017-02-10
Packaged: 2018-08-31 11:54:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 13,835
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8577586
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FableButt/pseuds/FableButt
Summary: A routine mission goes ass up eight ways to Sunday when a warp portal opens and spits out a very damaged Black Lion.  The only problem is: Shiro is already part of Voltron with the rest of the team, so why is there another lion floating through space?  The Paladin inside is someone they've never met before, but sure as hell seems to know a lot about the team.  He's hiding something, too, so can they really trust him?





	1. Double Vision

**Author's Note:**

> i had a stupid idea and this isn't serious at all but fuck lets do it

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> lol let's fucking do this. it's not serious at all but I wanna indulge myself.

The thing about missions was that they only fell into one of two categories: easy or hard. There was no middle ground, or at least Lance hadn't noticed it. Either they would slide in and form Voltron and kick a lot of ass or just enough minor shit would go wrong to fuck everything up so it would be life or death. They had been doing this for almost a year now if the clock on Pidge's laptop was right, so the little stuff like blowing up a warship or fighting off a Robeast wasn't a big deal like it used to be. Every few days was a new celebration party on some alien planet. It had fallen into a routine.

The only thing that kept Lance, and everyone else he guessed, concerned was that when shit hit the fan it really knew what it was doing. One second you were beating the enemies head in and the next all the warning lights were flashing red and you weren't really sure if you would live or die.

They always made it through somehow. Maybe with an interesting new scar or having to partially regrow a finger in the healing pods, but so far no battles had turned out so badly they weren't able to pull through in the end. Close calls, of course, were a thing, but no one had had one of those since Minat 9 by this point.

It was routine when the alarms blared that Lance didn't do anything more than groan in mild annoyance before dragging out of bed. He didn't even bother to rush to get his suit on. The brown haired teen would be the last to the debriefing room, as usual, but that didn't make him hurry up any. He strolled down the hall with his helmet under one arm and thought about maybe doubling back to do a quick brush of his teeth.

Lance was the last, as predicted, but even stiff and stern Allura just didn't seem to have it in herself to be as serious as normal. "Team," She started, hands clasped in front of her chest. "A level 2 Galra Warship has picked us up and is heading this way. We need you to form Voltron and stop it."

"Please, as if we'll even need to do that." Lance scoffed, rolling his eyes and earning a scowl from Keith. "That's, like, baby stuff. I could probably take it out on my own." Lance busied himself examining his nails, as if he could see them through the thick gloves of his suit. Shiro shook his head. Hunk and Pidge looked bored, or maybe like they agreed but didn't want to say anything.

"Regardless, we need to take the precaution. Team, move out." Allura frowned at him but didn't argue, probably also agreeing if Lance had to guess. Yawning, he pushed past Keith with a wholly unnecessary hip check, earning a short 'Hey!' for the dark haired teen.

A slide and ride later, Lance was in Blue and flying into space. It didn't even take thought by this point for them to form Voltron, all the parts sliding together like they were greased. The buzz of everyone else's consciousness was in the back of his head. It didn't weird him out or startle him at this point. Lance didn't have to worry about them reading his thoughts or something dumb like that anymore. He knew it didn't work that way unless he allowed it.

The warship was, as expected, more of a slogging chore than anything. Level 2 Galra warships used to be big threats to the team, mostly because of their massive size and the particle cannons on their tops. Now that they knew the fined tuned ins and outs of taking them down, it was more a point of hitting all the right spots so it would implode on itself from a hull breach. It wasn't as hard as you think even when dodging ship blasts, but it did take time to hit the sweet spots in the right order.

And this ship was turning out like all the others they had fought before. The occasional tingle in the back of Lance's skull told him where to move his leg, how to kick or dodge or aim to help everyone else. It wasn't a big deal.

Until Lance felt a flare of panic and confusion coming from Pidge and Hunk's side. By the time they got Voltron turned around for Lance to see, a strange blast of energy forced the connection to break between the five Paladins, which cause Voltron to break apart too. A portal had opened up, looking almost like the ones the castleship made, but brighter and more blue.

The beam had come from some strange ship that had partially pushed through the portal. It looked almost Galran, only sleeker in design. It didn't last long, however, because the portal closed before it could come all the way through. The result was the ship being split. The half through the portal remained floating and now disabled and useless in space, the second half likely still wherever it had portaled from.

Right now Lance had more important things to worry about. Like how he was suddenly face to face with a still very much active level 2 warship, and how no matter how he tried he couldn't get connected to any of the other Paladins or the ship. Communications were completely cut off. Even his link to Blue felt fuzzy and off, like the robotic lion were drunk or somewhere far away.

Lance didn't have much time to think about it because drone ships were on his ass. He and Blue darted and dodged but eventually shook then off or destroyed them. His maneuvering had taken him closer to the wreckage of the half ship. It was a mess up close with scraps of metal and supplies loose in space, but it was a good place to hide until he could figure out what was going on.

".... el...." A message cut in, startling Lance. It was from Black and Shiro if Blue was picking it up right. An audio message only that was full of static and electric sizzling. The voice didn't come through, only a pained noise that Lance couldn't make out, then it closed back out as if the strain was too much to keep it open. A pinpoint appeared on Blue's screen: Black's distress beacon. Those only turned on when the Lions were so damaged they couldn't move.

"Ah, shit." Lance hissed under his breath and flicked the switches for Blue's thrusters. Black and Shiro were close, deeper in the wreckage if he was picking this up right. He didn't know how the hell Shiro had gotten all the way out here or how he had gotten so hurt, but he didn't know if anyone else was around to save him. Lance pushed the controls towards Black's beacon and urged her to go as fast as possible. If it was a trap or not didn't pass Lance's mind.

Which would have turned out to be pointless anyway, because it wasn't. Blue found Black half tucked against a bit of debris, sparking and crackling. The other lion was almost destroyed from what Lance could see, pieces of it broken off. One of it's feet was missing, along with it's tail. The red wings were smashed and not connected to it's back anymore, and there was a massive crack running from under it's chin and down it's chest. Multiple plates of armor were missing, showing the more tender electronics underneath. Lance felt a pang of fear from Blue at the shape the other lion was in.

A picture showed up on screen, sent from Black, in real time of what the diagnostics were. Almost every part of the schematic of the other lion was flashing red, but what caught Lance's attention the most was apparently what Black had wanted them to see: The cabin was destabilizing and losing oxygen. It wouldn't be too long before either Shiro ran out of air in there or the cabin just vacuumed in on itself and crushed him. Lance knew he needed to act fast.

Blue suddenly felt apprehensive but Lance couldn't parse out why. He moved her for Black anyway, having her grab the half destroyed lion as secure as she could in her mouth and with her front legs. Then he activated her boosters again, piloting them towards the castleship.

Galra drones followed and shot at the pair of them, but Lance was a man on a mission. They were easy enough to dodge even when loaded down with extra weight. The ship opened a hole in the particle barrier long enough for Blue to fly through, and soon enough Lance was landing in Blue's hanger.

It was messy. Black couldn't move, and as soon as they were back in contained space the larger lion hit the hanger floor hard. Alien oil splattered around it and it slid along the ground a few feet before stopping, a crumpled heap on it's side. Black was still sparking and leaking, but the light in it's eyes was gone and it didn't move.

Lance was out of Blue's mouth almost as soon as she landed. He tore his helmet off and tosses it to the side as he ran forward. Black's mouth was shut tight, but there was an emergency hatch on it's belly he could get to from where he was at. The door shrieked as he forced it open, twisted metal resisting under his grip.

Inside was somehow worse than outside. Loose wires and metal were all over the place. It was dark, not even the emergency lights on inside. It was only thanks to the glow of his Bayard that he saw even an inch in front of him. Something wet puddled under his feet when he got closer to what should have been the pilot's cabin and Lance's heart was in his throat.

A body was slumped against the floor, what should have been a wall, crumpled and bent in awkward positions. A chill ran down Lance's spine when he realized the puddle he was stomping through was blood. It had to have been Shiro, since they were in the Black Paladin's armor and had the helmet on, too.

Lance could remember from basic training that it wasn't good to move the body of someone injured like this, but he didn't have much choice did he? It was let Shiro bleed out waiting on help that Lance wasn't even sure was coming since the coms were down, or risk getting him out of there now. The brown haired teen wasn't as strong as Shiro, Keith or Hunk, but he still wrapped his arms around the least damaged part of Shiro's torso and worked on dragging him out of there.

Hands grabbed to help Lance pull Shiro out when he got back to the exit. It was Coran, panic and confusion written on his face. "What happened?!" The older Altean sputtered as they got Shiro onto some type of levitating gurney that Coran had brought with him. In the light, Shiro was in even worse shape than Lance would have imagined. His arms and one of his legs were broken, bone jutting out at odd angles. He wasn't breathing and all the white parts of his armor were covered in blood. The helmet was cracked, but at least intact. He seemed smaller somehow, but it was hard to tell with him looking so poorly. Lance wasn't sure how anyone would survive this even with a healing pod.

"No idea!" They didn't have time for pleasantries, so Lance spoke while they pushed the gurney as fast as they could to the infirmary. There wasn't even a chance for them to set the broken bones, they needed to get Shiro in a pod now to hopefully staunch the worst of the wounds and stop the bleeding. The two of them were quiet as they worked, only the grunts of exertion between them when they worked on getting Shiro's immobile body into the pod.

It closed with a hiss, freezing Shiro in place. They hadn't even been able to take his helmet off, but Coran assured Lance they could later when they had to take him out to set his arms and leg.

"If we get the chance, that is." Coran muttered to himself, reading the screen on the pod. Even though Lance couldn't read the language on the readout, he knew it must have been bad just from how it looked. Flashing and angry. At least the 'estimated ticks' counter still started for how long it would take. Over twelve hours, not counting the time it took to take him out and clean him up when he was more stable. A hell of a healing. Lance's worst trips inside, times he had almost died, still had only taken about eight hours tops.

"Damn, fuck..." Lance rubbed his face with his gloved hand, instantly regretting it when he felt sticky wetness on his face. Blood, no doubt. Him and Coran were covered in it now. The teen suddenly felt very tired and very sick, like all he wanted was a shower and a nap. Maybe a nap in the shower for good measure.

It's not like Lance got a chance to do much more than catch his breath. The door slid open and Allura came in, followed by a very anxious Hunk.

"Shiro?" Allura paled, eyes wide as she took in the body in the healing pod. Hunk's mouth was open, brows knitted in confusion. He also looked like he might get sick. Walking over to the pod, Allura stared up at Shiro with concern and worry. Then her eyes turned to Lance, flinty and hard. "What happened out there?"

Lance wasn't sure how to answer, but he told Allura, Coran and Hunk everything that happened. From the portal opening, which Hunk already knew at least, to hiding in the wreckage, then the distress beacon and bringing Shiro in with Blue. He had no idea what had caused this or how it had happened so quickly. He repeated this two more times, when Keith came in and then Pidge a few minutes later.

"Look, guys, I kind of just want to go shower." Everyone had been tucked together and trying to figure this out, from the beam that forced them apart to Shiro, when Lance spoke up. Only himself and Keith weren't contributing, himself too tired and Keith too busy glaring a worried hole into the healing pod.

Lance waved to them briefly as he headed to the door. He would leave all the smart stuff to the egg heads of the group. The door slid open and Lance went to move out, but he ended up yelping when instead he stumbled into a firm body that was coming inside at the same time.

"Lance! Are you alright?!" Everything went quiet and Lance snapped his eyes up, finding a very confused, concerned and perfectly healthy Shiro looking back down at him. Lance's mouth gaped, rendered speechless and unsure how to answer or process this turn of events.

"You... but... you." It was all Lance could manage, slowly turning around to the equally stunned faces of all his friends and teammates. Slowly he raised his hand and pointed at the pod, where the person who was _not_ Shiro was still inside.

* * *

A few hours later Lance was clean and ready for bed, but no one was very interested in sleeping. The group of them were in the infirmary again, waiting on Coran to manually open the healing pod. Whoever the person inside was, their condition has stabilized enough to pull them out for a few minutes.

Shiro seemed the most anxious out of all of them even if he was trying his best to hide it. He had went to see the wreckage of the second Black Lion by this point. Keith and Pidge had even went back to the scrap yard where the half ship from the portal plus the now destroyed level 2 Galra ship were floating in disrepair. They couldn't gleam anything useful, just scrambled signals that made no sense and a few pieces of odd looking but unusable tech.

Shiro hadn't mentioned it to anyone else, but whatever he had felt or saw when he saw the second Black had unnerved him enough to stay quiet about it. The Lions themselves were being oddly distant, too, since when Lance questioned Blue about it she clamed up.

"Be on guard, everyone. Wounded or not, we don't know who this is or what they're capable of." Allura stood at Shiro's side, lips pressed into a firm line as she stared down the other person in the pod. Taking that as his cue, Coran opened the healing pod. Instead of letting the person fall out on their own, before whoever it was could shake off the cryofreeze, the orange haired Altean had them laid down on a gurney like from earlier.

The person didn't move, but they were breathing now. A soft noise of pain was muffled by the helmet. A few ticks later and Coran had moved over them, then tugged the helmet off their head.

It was hard to tell, but they looked... human. Their face was bloody from some injury that caused their nose to bleed, and both eyes were a purplish yellow from bruising being partially healed from the pod. The hair was trimmed in a style similar to his own if a little neater and shorter. Their skin was also lighter than his own, but still dark enough to show some type of mixed ancestry.

Coran stepped back when the person took a deep, wet breath and started to stir more. Dark blue eyes opened blearilly before wincing from the overhead light.

"Nahyat..." The person blinked again before trying to lift their arm, but they hissed sharply from pain. Their arms were still broken, still needed set. They closed their eyes again tight and snarled, showing straight white and human looking teeth. If Lance had to guess, he would say this person, man?, was older than him but younger than Shiro. "Nahyat, where..."

Taking another shaky breathe, the stranger grit their teeth and surprised them all by swinging his good leg over the side of the gurney. He didn't fall, but was brought instead to a rather abrupt sitting position. They opened their eyes and blinked again, looking out at where everyone else waited and watched with baited breath.

The stranger stiffened up, eyes practically bulging from his head as he took all of them in. He opened his mouth as if to say something, then snapped it closed again. Those blue eyes ran over them again, but this time he caught Lance's own and they stayed there. Something akin to pain showed on the other person's face. Lance wasn't sure what he did to cause a look like that.

"Am I dead?" Their voice shook, vulnerable. It was rough from not using it, but there was a clearly masculine lilt there. Allura stepped forward, catching their attention. Their eyes lowered and they seemed to deflate, seeming smaller than before.

"No, you are not." Allura kept her voice crisp and formal, but not unkind. They were all wary since so many questions still needed to be answered. "I am princess Allura of the Alteans. Who are you?"

The stranger glanced back up and cleared their throat. They tried to sit up a little straighter, look more formal and speak with respect in a way that Lance had seen Shiro do a million times before. Their voice didn't shake when they spoke now, but they still looked confused and vulnerable.

"I'm Callie...." The stranger, Callie, hesitated. His eyes flickered to Lance, and he cleared his throat again before looking back to Allura. "Callie Rhys." He looked almost like he wanted to choke but it passed quickly. "I am the Paladin of the Black Lion and the leader of team Voltron."

Shiro stepped forward now. He still looked tense but not as much as before. "Shirogane Takashi. I, too, am the Paladin of the Black Lion and leader of team Voltron." Shiro's tone didn't hold any accusation, but it did want answers to the unsaid question of 'how'. Callie's eyes shied away from him, as if mulling over how to answer.

"Do you... believe in time travel?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wrote 100% of this from my phone at work so worry if it looks weird
> 
> the running joke of this whole story is that we, myself and you readers, all know the chuckle heads gunna be introduced are their kids and shit but they don't aaaaaaay lol
> 
> that thinly veiled plot tag is there for a reason
> 
> so is the cursing one but... not for another few chapters lol
> 
> when I get home from work I'm updating gold dust


	2. Two's Company

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Callie asks for help.

Shiro knew, deep down, that what Callie said had to have been true. He had been down to the Blue Lion's hanger. The wrecked remains of the second Black Lion were still there, moved into a gentler position by her blue pride mate. While the broken Black hadn't come online completely, when Shiro neared her eyes lit up for a moment and he was assaulted with horrible feelings and images. The sensation of blood oozing over the seat, terror, loss. Then the pressing mind recoiled in shock before going offline again.

So even if Shiro didn't want to belive the story, a strange nagging from that encounter made him know it wasn't a lie.

Callie looked tired and young and broken. His blue eyes flicked around the room, but would occasionally linger on one of them before looking away. No one really knew what to say, and the faces of his team ranged from amazed to disbelieving. No one seemed willing to speak, so Shiro clasped his hands together and drew attention from the other Black Paladin to himself.

"I'm sure we're all very curious about Callie's story, but he's still hurt." Callie glanced up at Shiro when he spoke before moving to carefully lay down again.

"Green Paladin." Callie closed his eyes and Coran moved to fetch some type of needle. It was full of a pink liquid, one that Shiro knew was a numbing agent for things like this. "I came with... will.... will you see if my team.... I don't want to be the only one who made it through."

Pidge narrowed their eyes but nodded. "I don't know if I believe your time travel nonsense and I want the full story when you wake up. But... I'll see what I can do."

That seemed to be enough for Callie, who relaxed as Coran pressed the needle into his neck. He was snoring softly just a few seconds later. Shiro turned to leave Coran to his work. It was with a silent signal from Allura that he stopped outside the door.

"Do you think we can trust him?" She looked serious, hands clasped in front of her. Allura had leaned in some so their faces were close. Her lovely blue eyes were imploring. Shiro had to take a moment before he could answer her.

"I don't know." Shiro shook his head. The others had stepped out by this point minus Coran. Standing up straighter and pulling back from Allura some, he raised his voice to address all of them and not just the princess. "That lion was Black. I know it is. No one could simulate the bond like that."

"Something seems off about this." Keith scowled and crossed his arms, glaring at the doorway into the infirmary. It had closed when they all came outside, and it was no doubt that Coran was busy stripping the damaged armor off the other man and bending his limbs back into the right place.

"I think so, too." Pidge spoke up from the side, adjusting their glasses and deep in thought. "I'm still going to see if I can find anything out. Even if this is some Galra trick, it's better to be ready." With that, Pidge turned and walked away. Most likely back to the room they had claimed as their 'workstation' not long after first settling into the castleship.

"Since there's nothing to be done about it right now, everyone go rest up. We can deal with this first thing in the morning." Allura nodded from Shiro's side. The princess retreated down the hallway, her brows drawn tighter tightly and the pinched look of thought across her face. Hunk, who had been muttering quietly to an exhausted looking Lance, drew his attention to himself after that.

"Am I the only one who thinks this is, like, maybe kind of possible? Like, what do we do if he's telling the truth?" Hunk winced at that thought. "That means we're all... dead or something, right?" A distressing enough thought. Hunk raised his hands and shook them in front of himself, palms up. "Well, like, nevermind, not going there. I'm going to check the fridge for breakfast in the morning then I'm heading to bed. Night."

"I'm going to head off, too. Some people around here need their beauty sleep." Lance spoke up with a stretch and an exaggerated yawn, but he side eyed Keith as he did so. The red Paladin didn't seem to care which caused Lance's face to twist up some before he scoffed and left. Hunk walked with him. After the pair turned the corner it just left Keith and Shiro.

Keith looked up at Shiro with a frown on his face. The younger man obviously had something to say, but before he got it out he shook his head and backed up. "Training room." Keith lifted his hand to wave back at Shiro.

"Remember to go to bed at a decent hour." The older man called after him. Keith just grunted as he turned the corner. Shiro sighed and rubbed his face. He might as well try and lay down. It would be an early morning tomorrow and he knew he wouldn't sleep well anyway.

* * *

Shiro dreamed of blood and death that night until he woke up in a cold sweat. It was still 'night' when he awoke but he knew sleep wouldn't be coming back. The Black Paladin stared at the ceiling and tried to calm his mind like he did every night, until the artificial lights of the castle started to brighten in simulated sunrise.

A quick shower and Shiro was ready for the day, even if the bags under his eyes spoke otherwise. He was used to being tired. It wasn't often that he slept more than a few hours a night.

Some morning training would be good, or even checking on Black. His Black, not the shattered double still down in the Blue Lion's hanger. First he would stop by the kitchen and grab something light before Hunk or Coran made breakfast.

It was quiet as Shiro walked down the hallways. No one was ever up at this hour. Or, it was rare anyway. Sometimes Pidge would pull all nighters and he would see the other paladin wandering the halls like a zombie before finally crashing.

When Shiro stepped into the kitchen and saw the light already on, at first he thought maybe that had been the case. Instead, he instantly went on the defensive and allowed his metallic arm to buzz to life.

Callie was standing by the green goo machine. He had a bowl in his hands that was filled to the brim and a spoon halfway to his mouth. He blinked, apparently just as surprised to see Shiro as Shiro was to see him.

The other man took a good look at the Galra made weapon that was Shiro's arm and dropped the spoon back in his bowl. His fingers twitched like he wanted to reach for something at his hip, but the strange man was wearing a gray pod suit that Coran had no doubt changed him into.

"Um." Callie looked down at the bowl, back to Shiro's arm, then finally to his face. He looked kind of sheepish. "I was hungry."

"The pods were supposed to alert us when you were done." Callie shrugged, relaxing just enough to pick his spoon back up and stir around his bowl. He took a small bite.

"I shut that off when I got out." He waved the spoon at Shiro some as he spoke. "You all seemed tired."

"You were supposed to be in it for another two hours." Shiro watched as Callie's brow knitted some as he mouthed the word 'hour'. He seemed to be counting off in his mind if how he bounced the spoon was any indication. Then his eyes lit up and he pointed the spoon at Shiro again.

"Oh! Five tocks! Yeah." The small smile then faded and Callie looked almost embarrassed. "The more you use those things, the more your body adapts to them. Uh... sorry if I startled you. I was going to wait in the infirmary, but...." Shiro followed his eyes down to the bowl, where the other man took another dainty bite of the goo.

Shiro was still wary, but he at least straightened up and turned his arm off. Neither of them really seemed to know what to say past that. Callie avoided Shiro's gaze as he carefully scooped more food into his mouth. Shiro kept his eyes level on the other man but tried to keep his expression cool and collected. Callie was odd but he hadn't _done_ anything so far. There was no reason to fly off the handle without proof he was out to get them.

"I could, uh, tell you stuff." Callie placed the now empty bowl down on the counter. He scratched his cheek, similar to how Lance would sometimes, before finally meeting his eyes. "I mean... I can't make you believe it, but...."

"Fine, yes. Let's move somewhere else."

"Dining room?"

After a moment's thought, Shiro nodded. He backed out to let Callie go first since he seemed to know his way around already. The walk was quiet except for the padding of Callie's bare feet down the dim hallway.

When they entered, the automatic lights of the dining room brightened up. Callie went and sat on the opposite side of the table from the door and placed his arms in front of him on the table. He was pensive. Shiro moved to sit down across from him, hands laced together as he waited.

"I won't tell you how _far_ into the future I'm from," When Callie found his voice he sighed softly. "But I will say that you and everyone else in the castle have been dead for a long time.

"Zarkon killed you. All of you. It started with your Green Paladin, Pidge. Captured by an ambush. Tortured to death and the Green Lion stolen. The rest of you in a blaze of glory trying to save them. The princess was wounded, but managed to get the remaining Lions hidden before she died. It was.... it was a long time ago. F-for me.

"Zarkon managed to get access to the Green Lion past the barrier. He didn't have Voltron but... he had enough to... copy it. He..." Callie swallowed and shook his head. While he spoke, his voice had become shaky and his eyes were somewhere far away. "Even with new Paladins found and the Green Lion recovered, we couldn't fight. At least, not for long. We had... no choice but to _try_ and..." His breathing hitched. "The Galra tried to stop us and made us overshoot the landing. I came back too far. I don't know if my team is still alive."

Callie hunched his shoulders and lowered his head. Shiro didn't think he was crying, but he was certainly close. Any encouraging words died in his throat. That was a lot to take in all at once.

They sat in silence until a flustered looking Coran came in. Shiro nodded to the older man that it was fine, and soon enough the princess and the rest of the Paladins were in the dining room rubbing sleep our of their eyes and ready to listen. Even the mice were present. Callie's voice didn't shake as much when he spoke this time.

You couldn't ignore how Callie's eyes would occasionally cut into Lance before he caught himself and looked away.

"Alright, so, if you 'overshot' your goal, when does this all happen?" Pidge, who had seemed unbothered despite vague details of their own demise, spoke up with a raised brow. They had made their point clear that they were the most skeptical already.

"I don't know exactly details, but.... I know you were at least in your mid-thirties when it happened. I only wanted to go back to that ambush, so..." Callie shook his head. "I wanted to change the future, but not like this." He motioned around him.

It was quiet again as everyone took in what Callie said. You could see the gears turning around the room as everyone came up with questions to ask the other man; Allura's face was the most scrutinizing, as if she had found some large plot hole in his story that needed addressing. Pidge opened up their laptop and flipped the screen around, beating them all to the punch.

"Even if you're lying, I did a scan last night before bed. I copied the energy pattern of that portal you came through and looked for similar signals. Looks like there were four more that opened up." A star map was on the screen, and as Pidge said there were four areas lit up. Callie's eyes widened and he leaned in, eyes darting to the blinking white dots as if they might tell him something. Then he deflated and sat back in his chair.

"Only four...." Rubbing his face, Callie collected himself before turning to the princess. "I know this is a lot to ask, but I implore you... please give me a chance to save my team. Even if this mission was a failure, I can't leave them out there to die."

"Alright." Allura's eyes were still boring into Callie with unspoken questions, but she kept her face steeled. It was like when she was trying to make a peace treaty, her diplomatic face that only showed what she wanted you to see. "We will investigate the signal closest to ourselves. If this is a trap, you understand there will be consequences, correct?"

Callie nodded, but he couldn't keep the broad smile off of his face. He stood abruptly, causing Shiro to tense. "You won't regret this, I promise! My team are all good people and excellent fighters."

"Lance." Callie seemed in a much better mood. Just that one little promise from Allura had turned him from looking two steps shy of death to the bright man before him. He also wasn't recognizable from the battered mess he had been the day before. At his full height, Callie was a little taller than Lance with broad shoulders and thick arms. He was lean with thin hips, too, that gave the illusion he was scrawnier than he really was.

"Man, it's really creepy how you know all our names already." Lance eyed Callie, causing the other Black Paladin to blush and look down. Callie continued, a little gentler this time.

"Black is still in Blue's hanger, right? Can I go and do what I can for her?" The look on Callie's face fell somewhat. Shiro could understand, as would any of the other Paladins. If Shiro's own Black were in that shape he would have been distraught.

"Well...." Lance glanced over at himself and Allura. When the princess nodded, Shiro did as well and gave his best encouraging smile. "Fine. But Pidge and Keith have to come to."

"Why me?" Keith scoffed at the brown haired teen, crossing his arms.

"Because Hunk can't since he's going to cook us a delicious breakfast." Lance stuck his tongue out at Keith. There was an unsaid 'I don't trust him' in the air from Lance, but even if Callie caught it he didn't seem to mind. Mentioned man seemed to be watching the start of Lance and Keith's bickering with something akin to wonder.

"I'll join you, as well." Standing up, Shiro gave a little stretch before walking for the door. Callie was on his heels, with Lance, Pidge and Keith following after. Pidge and Keith didn't look very interested in this. Lance seemed more invested in getting under the Green and Red Paladin's skin.

Before too long, they were at the hanger doors for Blue. It was a longer walk than what was normal for Lance, since all he had to do was use the lift system. That could only do one at a time and wasn't practical, however. Callie pushed into the room after Lance opened the door for them.

"Black!" The distressed Paladin rushed over to his lion. The lion was still offline, but Callie worked to open the bottom hatch before sliding inside. "Shit!" His voice echoed from the lion, before he came back out smudged in some sort of grease and scowling.

Blue had padded over to investigate. The mechanical lion seemed distressed by the presence of the Black Lion in her hanger. Lance stepped for her and rubbed her front leg some, grinning up at her. Shiro wondered what mental exchange was going on between the two before he glanced back at Black.

Callie had come out and was lingering by one of the walls. A few presses of his hand and a gust of steam shot out as a panel opened. Inside was row upon row of strange and alien tools with a blue back light. Shiro had no idea something like that was even there, but Callie just picked up a few of the objects and made his way back over to Black before going back inside.

* * *

A fine coating of grime was smeared all over Callie when he emerged again an hour or so later. Shiro and Pidge had busied themselves with looking over the tools while Lance had started by annoying Keith before moving to spending time with Blue. Keith was watching the open door to the Black Lion carefully, lips pulled into a scowl.

Keith didn't like this even if he wasn't bringing it up. The dark haired teen wasn't subtle about it at all. Still, when Callie saw Keith he gave him a small half smile before putting his stuff down. He placed the tools on the ground and stretched; the other Black Paladin's back cracked loudly enough that Shiro heard it from where he was at. That couldn't have been healthy.

"Well, I got the inside mostly cleaned up. The self repair diagnostics were down so I had to force a manual reset on it. Hopefully Blackie should be up and running in a few days!" Callie sighed, wiping his hands off on his thighs as he did. "Maybe if Polp'Yon were here something more could be done about her paw or paneling..."

"Plop Yawn?" Shiro and Pidge had joined Keith and Callie since the other man had re-emerged. Pidge wrinkled their nose at the strange name and tried to repeat it in question.

"Polp'Yon." Callie corrected. "Xe's the... uh, _my_ Yellow Paladin. A Kistordian." Sighing again, fondly this time, Callie smiled at the three before him. "On my team I'm the leader, as I said, but my teammates names are Plp'Yon, Aina, Nahyat and, uh... Hissisisidiaisisis, but we call _him_ Hissi for short.

"Then we have our Prince and his 'advisor', our mechanic, and the twins on the Castle of Lions." When Callie finished, he nodded after rattling off the various people. Lance had come back over, and was trying to whisper Hissi's full name under his breath as confidently as Callie had with very poor results.

"So... you guys, like, really form Voltron like we do?" Lance asked, frowning at Callie. The future Paladin wouldn't meet Lance's eyes, oddly sheepish around the teen.

"Of course we do, or... did. I'm not sure if we will be anytime soon with how Black and Green got trashed on our failed warp." Callie winced. "If, uh.. if Nahyat even..." He looked a little uncomfortable at the implications his teammate might not have even made it. Shiro took pity on him. Even if Callie looked better than when they brought him in, he was still kind of grimy from the rescue. Bags that Shiro was just now noticing were deep under the future Paladin's eyes. Shiro gave him a small pat on the shoulder, like he would any of the rest of his team, which caused Callie to flinch but at least pull out of his dark thoughts.

"I'm sure your friends are fine. Allura is already planning our warp to the closest signal Pidge picked up. Why don't you go clean up and get some rest?" Callie seemed unsure but still nodded at Shiro's urging. With that in mind, the Black Paladin told Pidge, Lance and Keith he would see them later before taking Callie to the bunks. Not the same hallway that all their rooms were in, but just one over. Close enough to keep an eye on the strange man.

Callie looked relieved. He gravitated to a room about midway down the hall, tapping in the code to have the door slide open before Shiro could tell it to him. The other man froze in the doorway before his shoulders slumped and he made a defeated noise.

"This was my room. For a second I didn't know why it wasn't...." Callie shook his head and gave a wistful smile. "I'll leave my door unlocked if any of you need to get in. I'm going to shower so... sorry if someone sees my ass?" With that, he gave a little laugh and stumbled into the room. As promised, the other man slipped into the bathroom before the Castle's sensors closed the main door.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have decided this can only be written on my phone while I'm at work. I tried to write it at home on my laptop like with my other fics and couldn't lol.
> 
> More of a needed chapter to push the plot than anything fun. This fic will have rotating POV. Lance > Shiro > Keith > Allura is the order, so next chapter is Keith!
> 
> The meat of the silly little plot for this fic will start in essence next chapter. We'll starting meeting the rest of the Future!Paladins.


	3. Double Edged Sword

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nancy Drew and the Case of the Blue Lion.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> warning that Keith has some mildly self depreciating talk and implied negative views on the autism spectrum a few paragraphs in.
> 
> nothing major, but I wanted you guys to know. Remember to tell me if you think I need to tag things! I don't bite and I'm all for keeping people comfortable! <3

Keith was not stupid. He did have his issues, he knew that. It was hard for him to pick up how other people were feeling sometimes, he didn't really get sarcasm or jokes a lot of the time, and expressing himself was like trying to force a cow to go down stairs- it just didn't happen.

But he wasn't stupid by any means of the word. For a long time Keith thought maybe he was. When he was nine foster family flavor of the month had taken him to a doctor for being 'too antisocial'. Doctor wanted to test the autism spectrum, but Jenny and Elias Armstrong had been so insulted the system gave them a 'broken' child he got shipped to a new bed to sleep in before he could get it done, and... well, it made a kid afraid. Like maybe it was his fault.

So Keith locked that tidbit away inside and didn't bring it up ever again. It wasn't like they gave any special reason for 'returning' him and papers got lost in a system so clogged with bodies. Instead he worked on what he was good at. Because even though he had trouble verbalizing what he meant he was a really good noticer. Keith noticed things, lots of things. Maybe not important stuff, like that a comment might push Lance too far or when Pidge wanted to be left alone, but he did.

Back at the Garrison they called it 'Instinct', but Keith never really saw it like that. When he was piloting he could just see all the little changes easier than other people or noticed small details that could be overlooked. It was the same with fighting, too. He could see a muscle twitch to know when to block a punch. It was just hard to explain that to people so they called it something else. Instinct.

It was why Keith didn't like or trust Callie. He was a noticer, and when he first laid eyes on the strange man he noticed too many things that were weird. The other man just looked too much like Lance in this way that Keith couldn't put his finger on. Like someone had tried to clone the Blue Paladin but messed with the genes beforehand.

The two of them had the same face shape, even if Callie's chin was a little more squared than the sharp jut that Lance's was. The shape of earlobes were identical, too. When Callie had smiled even if it was barely there, his lips had quirked up in a way identical to Lance's. It was all too much.

After a rough few rounds in the training room that evening couldn't clear Keith's head he went to Pidge. He knew the green Paladin would still be up after a story like Callie had told, and he found it to be true. However, when he tried to explain himself he just couldn't get it out right and Pidge was focusing on their work anyway. They said enough to placate Keith until he finally got the hint and went to his room.

The next day at breakfast and then in Blue's hanger, more and more similarities were brought to the front of Keith's mind. How they laughed, how Callie would move his hands when he talked, it was the same. When he spoke about his lost teammates Callie got that same faraway look in his eyes that Lance had had a few times; when the other teen's defences were lowered and he talked about home back on earth.

Keith also didn't miss how diffrent that Callie was when speaking to Lance. He would get a little more flustered than he would everyone else. There was a fondness in his eyes that Keith couldn't really begin to place but it made his mind wander. Callie appeared to be human. Just what _was_ his connection to the future Lance if that whole story was true?

In fact, Keith had caught Callie looking at himself like that a time or two as well. It was never as long and that sweetness for Lance was replaced by some type of determination. Pride, maybe. It was just never as long and only when the other man thought Keith wasn't looking. There wasn't that same hesitance, though.

"Paladins," It wasn't too long after Shiro had left Blue's hanger with Callie that Allura's voice rang over the Castle's speakers. Keith had been in the middle of returning to his room; Lance and his antics could get tiring after a while. "Please report to the main deck as soon as possible. Have your battle suits ready."

Keith's stomach protested loudly at the announcement. He hadn't eaten anything since before the battle the day before and had been looking forward to Hunk's cooking. That didn't mean he wasn't punctual, rushing to his room and pulling on the skintight battlesuit. Not long after he was main deck with Allura and Coran. Shiro had already beaten him here and was speaking with the two Alteans in hushed tones. Hunk wasn't far behind him, then Pidge, and last Lance. The mystery Paladin wasn't anywhere to be seen; Keith felt a little anxiety that no one was around the keep an eye on him.

"The mice." Shiro squeezed his shoulder and answered the unsaid question. It instantly made Keith relax. It wasn't much but it was better than nothing. Keith was glad that Shiro was so good at reading him after all their years together.

"Paladins," Allura clasped her hands together in front of herself and called whatever this meeting was to order. "After much thought, I have decided that we will perform the warp to the closest signal now rather than later. That way if it does turn out to be a trap it can be dealt with swiftly." There was no allusion needed for them to all know she was talking about Callie.

"Ugh, we haven't even eaten yet!" Lance whined from his side, head tossed back and slumping in the most dramatic and attention seeking way Lance could probably muster at the moment. Keith didn't understand how he could have so much energy for stuff like that.

"If this is really an extraction, it shouldn't take that long. Coran will keep the food at the appropriate temperature for consumption until you return." Allura was using her no-nonsense tone, so even if Lance had a valid point it couldn't be helped. It was mission time and Keith hadn't even gotten to brush his teeth yet today.

Not long later Keith was in Red's cockpit, seated and waiting on launch. Pidge had already uploaded the coordinates to Green, who had shared it with the rest of her pride. From what information Keith could gather, the signal was in Galra-free and mostly untraversed space. There was one planet nearby and while it had life, nothing had evolved sentience yet.

The warp punched Keith in the stomach like it always did, but at least the nausea passed quick enough. At Shiro's signal he pushed the throttle and him and Red were out in the openness of space. Green and Pidge were leading the charge since they knew exactly where the portal had opened. Keith couldn't see anything except for the looming planet and it's twin moons.

"I'm not picking up anything." Pidge muttered over the comms. They seemed intent and Keith could vaguely hear a keyboard being abused in the background.

"That mean we can go back to the ship? I'm starving." Hunk groaned and Lance joined in.

"Guys, we need to focus. Pidge, is there anything you can do to get us some intel?" Shiro cut Hunk and Lance's grouseing short, which made Lance huff even if he was mostly ignored.

"Maybe. Just give me-" A loud chime started up in Keith's cockpit. It wasn't an alarm even if it startled him like one. More of a ring like a bell, low and slow. A radar popped up on his screen showing a distress signal from the planet below. It had just been started up. "Nevermind. Should we check it out?"

"Yes. Remember to be on guard, everyone. We don't know what could be waiting on us down there." Shiro warned before moving planetside.

A whole lot of jungle was what was waiting on them. The planet was covered in tall, lush alien trees dotted with yellows and white. It made the world look sickly even if it was crawling with all sorts of strange life.

The signal was close and easy to track down. Keith could see with his naked eye where something big had crash landed, snapping the trunks of the yellow trees in two and making them bleed a deep maroon. The only problem was that the undergrowth was so thick they couldn't even see whatever had crashed, let alone land. On Shiro's signal they landed in a wide spot and went to trek on foot. Pidge was the only one who stayed behind, both to relay instructions to them but also in case something happened.

For a jungle it was surpsingly crisp. The air was breathe able but only barely, each lungful like biting like they were high on a mountain. It was cold enough that Keith could feel the chill through his armor but they didn't have to worry about freezing. It was just uncomfortable.

Keith's Bayard sliced the four of them a path with little to no resistance. Everything bled that same maroon. He was leading the pack both by chance and because of his own impatience. The dark haired boy just wanted to get whatever trap this was out of the way so he could put this all behind him.

Color him surprised when the signal led them right to a shut down Blue Lion. She didn't look damaged, badly anyway, but there were more dings and dents and missing paint than Lance's Lion. The shield was up, so whoever had been inside must have been gone.

The clearing around this different Blue was beaten down. Something like a fire pit had been made from green stones and a strange blue dirt. Coals were still warm in the pit but the flames had long died down. Something like a sleeping mat was rolled up next to it. There were a few of what Keith recognized as wrappers for the strange rations that they kept inside the Lions for scenarios like this. 

"So.... what's the plan here?" Hunk was looking around curiously as he said this. So far this was lending more credibility to Callie's story. Lance was the most awestruck. Keith could tell that even though they all were wearing their helmets to help them breathe. The Blue Paladin had lost all pretense of looking for anything and was just staring up at the second Blue with a kind of mute shock.

"We need to find the pilot." Shiro drew Keith's attention when he spoke. He pointed to a path through the undergrowth that Keith hadn't noticed, worn down for a massive body to pass through. "Keith, stay here. Lance, Hunk, come with me." 

"Right. Got it." Lance's voice was shaky as he tore his eyes away from the second Blue.

The three of them left Keith alone, then. He sighed and sat down by the embers of the fire, Bayard still in his hand. The comm in his helmet crackled and fizzled in his ear. The dead air feedback that usually buzzed low and quiet stopped. Looks like if he needed to call anyone back, he would have to rely on pure lung power.

"... ina! Ai...." Static screeched to life and made Keith wince. The burst was over as quick as it had started, the words on the other side too fuzzy to make out who had even said them. There was a snap from behind him and Keith shot to his feet with his Bayard raised. The plasma sword hummed.

Before Keith was a massive alien. At least seven and a half feet tall. It was humanoid, with two arms and two legs, but the proportions were strange. A long tail twitched and bent down stalks of the odd grass.

It was hard to tell much more than that. The alien was covered from head to toe in armor. Not just any armor, but the Blue Paladin's armor. The armor that Lance should have currently been wearing. It wasn't exactly the same. Scuffed and worn in places, for one. Another was that the helmet on the alien's head seemed to have morphed for some type of dual protrusions from the head.

The alien was also in a hostile stance. What Keith recognized as the Blue Bayard was fisted in a clawed hand. The alien made a few hissing and clicking sounded like a snake or lizard might. He thought he caught a guttural and deep sound like "Aina" mixed in there, too.

Keith tensed up, ready to strike. Blood rushed in his ears as he waited on what the alien would do. The Blue Bayard activated. Keith didn't know exactly what the weapon was since it seemed to be of some otherworldly design. It was sharp and kind of like a mix between a scimitar and a horn. All Keith really needed to know was that it was sharp and currently being lifted against him.

He didn't have time to dodge. For such a hulking beast the humanoid was surprisingly agile. Keith blocked and had to dig his heels into the dirt. The raw power behind the swing still pushed him back a few inches before he got a more solid stance.

Plasma hissed hot on plasma as Keith tried to use the weight baring down on him to his advantage. He managed to do a quick duck and feint to the side, causing the alien to lurch forward and giving Keith enough time to go for a quick strike.

It was barely met by the tip of the other sword, preventing Keith from getting a nasty cut in. The alien hissed and clicked more in what he had to guess was in a distressed tone. That phrase or word or name, 'Aina', was repeated a few more times.

"Keith!" A blip of blue flew through the air before hitting the alien on the back. It roared in pain, a guttural sound, before turning around. That large tail knocked Keith off balance and onto the ground. Lance, Shiro and Hunk were running back down the path towards them. Lance's Bayard was transformed and Shiro had his arm turned on.

The alien turned it's head as if looking at Keith. It roared again before charging towards his friends with it's sword raised. A soft whirring sounded behind him, like when a a computer is first booting up. The comms suddenly crackled back to life just as Keith realized it was the second Blue Lion starting back up.

"-si they're safe, they're friends Hissi! Hissi!" Callie's voice was fanatic in his ear. A few bursts of static lingered between his words

"Paladins!" Allura's voice overpowered Callie's. She kept her voice level, as always, but there was a note of urgency there. "That is the future Blue Paladin! We believe his translator has malfunctioned. Do not harm him!"

Said Blue Paladin, Hissi, was frozen in place. He looked torn between attacking Shiro or doing as he had been asked. Finally, he settled for letting the blade of his Bayard fade into it's base form. The alien straightened from it's battle position and glanced back. Still tense and tail still lashing, but at least not on the offensive any longer.

Blue grumbled lowly from behind him. Keith tilted his head back when a shadow fell over him. Blue was sitting up now. Hissi stalked past Keith and climbed into the Lion's waiting mouth, ignoring them.

Blue stood as Keith was doing the same. She looked down at them, yellow eyes bright. Her gaze seemed to linger on Lance. His eyes were glazed over and a pained look was on his face. It passed and the second Blue backed up a few steps before taking to the air.

"What the fuck." Lance muttered. He wiped his hand over his face. His eyes were somewhere far away.

"It's alright. Let's go back to the Castle." Shiro clapped Lance on the shoulder. He had a look of understanding on his face.

The walk back was tense. The ride back tenser. Hunk explained to Pidge what happened, but when the Green Paladin pressed him for answers about details from the clearing he just grunted. Lance was oddly quiet the entire time.

Touchdown landed them all in the main hanger. The other Blue was already there. So was Allura, Coran and a much cleaner looking Callie. The other Blue pilot was standing before them, rigid, helmet off. Coran looked to be examining the side of his head.

When Keith landed and tore out of Red, the alien Blue Paladin pulled from the attentions of the princess and barreled straight for him. He grabbed for his Bayard but the alien had him by his shoulders and was hunched down in his face before he could activate it. It's breath fogged up his visor.

"Aina!" Row upon row of razor sharp teeth stared back at him. Helmet off, Hissi looked almost like a lizard person or a dragon. He had a long snout that was more pronounced since the helmet was off. The protrusions that showed through his helmet had been twisted horns. His skin was leathery with scales, deep reds and blacks that sparkled purple in the light. It vaguely put Keith in mind of a dragon.

Hissi pulled Keith against it's chest and squeezed him in what might have been a hug. Keith sputtered as the front of his helmet pushed uncomfortably against his nose.

"Hissi!" Callie ran over, hands up and shaking them in front of his chest on a 'don't' motion. The lizard alien pulled away from Keith but held him at arm's length. There was a loud crack as his jaws suddenly unhinged and he opened his mouth. Keith was left staring into black void of teeth. A forked tongue flicked out and licked his visor.

As quickly as it happened, the dragon like alien backed away and had it's mouth closed. Keith lifted his Bayard up between them but didn't activate it. The others were around them. Shiro's arm was on and Pidge's Bayard was buzzing.

"You are not Aina." The alien's voice was a low rumble, as if he was pushing the words out of his chest instead of his lungs. The tail twitched from side to side. He took a deep breath and could have maybe looked forlorn; it was hard to read alien body language. "Callie. Where is Aina? Is Aina hurt? I need to see her."

Callie patted the alien on the back lightly and shook his head. "I don't know. Just... give me a minute, okay? I'll explain everything." Nodding to the alien, Callie turned and addressed the rest of the team instead. From up close, Keith could better see that the man had cleaned up. He still looked tired.

"Thank you all for helping us. This is Hissisisidiaisisis. He's my Blue Paladin."

"Call me Hissi. I know it is hard for your mammal tongues to say my name." Hissi lifted his nose and looked down at those gathered around him. "Who are these people, Callie?" He squinted at Lance in particular, taking in the matching armor. His eyes flicked up to Lance's face, then to Callie quickly. His face twisted up in confusion before going back to being impassive and blank.

"Our plan worked, Hissi." Callie smiled up at his teammate, but then it faltered some. "Too well. We overshot our target by almost seven sweeps."

Hissi took in a sharp breath of air. He made a chattering noise in his chest when he did so and shook his head. " _Sliss Sais!_ " Whatever that was it must have been a curse of some sort. The communicators never translated those. "Callie, my hive has not even been built yet!"

"These are the Paladins we came here to save. Just.... younger."

"So these ones built your hive?" Hissi's long claw pointed vaguely at Keith. Callie sputtered in response.

"Wha- Hush, you!" Callie scoffed and planted a fist on his waist, hip jutted to the side. His other hand was raised up and pointing at Hissi. Keith caught the very _Lance_ pout and raised brow.

"Hissi, please, welcome to my ship." Allura caught the attention of the two future Paladins, who stilled at her voice. They straightened up and paid reverent attention as Allura introduced herself. This was followed by her giving a more formal introduction to the rest of the team, even though Callie and Hissi seemed familiar enough with them.

Keith was still connecting the dots, slowly, in his head. He wasn't as smart as Pidge, but he was a noticer. And damnit, Keith had noticed a lot of weird shit surrounding Callie. Really from the future so....

Was Callie Lance's son?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Keith is kind if treated as 'the dumb one' with Lance in a lot of fics. I wouldn't put it past him to figure stuff out or at least be suspicious. He _did_ figure Pidge out after only being around them a few days or so. Shiro had known before, Hunk assumed from pictures (the snoop), Allura from the mice, and what did Keith have to go on??? Nothing, basically. He would figure this out first.
> 
> Just depends on what he would do about it lol.


	4. Between Two Fires

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Allura panics.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lance is a smart boy

When the radio had crackled to life, Allura had noticed. She was running the control deck so she had to have noticed. This was the second time that communications had been strangely cut off. No matter how hard she had tried, the connection wouldn't reestablish. It was just static and dead air over the lines.

"Paladins?" She tried again, face pinched into a frown. Nothing.

Then the mice had been whispering in the back of her mind, drawing her attention. Allura quieted Coran, who had been rambling about frequencies at her side, and focused on her four mice companions.

An image pulled into her mind. It was from a strange angle, under the bed maybe, and was hard to look at. Everything was wide and if Allura knew what a fish eye lens was, she would have drawn the comparison. But the mice were in the room Callie had been shown as they had been asked.

The man in question, in the vision, was half dressed in the black body suit of the Paladin armor. Coran had given it back to him since there wasn't anything else for him to wear, just without what seemed to be the Black Bayard. The suit was pulled up over his hips to hide his modesty, at least. He looked damp like he had just showered.

Curiously, criss crossings of warped and faded scars lined the man's back.

This was not what the mice were trying to show her, however. Callie had the helmet he had come in wearing, frowning at it. A buzzing and static were in it too, along with some whispered alien words that Allura couldn't make out. Callie slid his helmet on his head and tapped the side to open the communications channel.

"Hello?" The Princess winced when, from outside the vision, the coms gave sharp snap that vaguely echoed what Callie had said. It was followed by what might have been an alien language, silky yet snappish as it hissed over the lines. She could half recall what it might have been but it was hard to tell when her communicator wouldn't translate it.

It was tense all around while the whole ordeal with Hissi was resolved. At least Allura knew one thing for sure: Callie hadn't tried to backstab them yet, and the quintessence of the second Blue Lion was an almost exact copy of the one Lance piloted. It wasn't _exactly_ the same, like how the negative of a picture wasn't the same as the picture itself, but there was enough there for Allura to recognise it.

She just... couldn't connect to it like she could Lance's Blue. This Blue Lion wasn't _her_ Blue anymore. It was just like how Qest's Blue had been _Alfor's_ Blue before he had passed on the right to her. It was unsettling at best.

It was almost hard to watch Callie and Hissi interact. After the odd run in with Keith upon touchdown, the Black Paladin had pulled the lizard man away from the rest of the group a little. Coran babbled in her ear and Shiro tried to give her a reassuring smile but she felt oddly subdued. With how the rest of her Paladins looked as they tried to converse with one another, she guessed they felt the same.

At least Callie seemed happy. He was holding Hissi at arm's length and speaking to him in a quiet voice. However, his gave betrayed him with the vibrant smile he was giving off. Probably happy he was okay, maybe explaining what had happened. Then he frowned and looked down. Allura jerked her eyes away when Lance spoke from her side.

"I'm starved. Can we go eat now?" Hunk nodded in agreement while patting his stomach. Keith even perked up at the mention of food.

"Yes, that sounds like a good plan. Paladins, rest. After breakfast we will go over plans for the next extraction." Allura clasped her hands together as she spoke, nodding to her small crew. Pidge muttered a quiet 'yes' before scurrying off, on the heels of Hunk and Lance. Keith hesitated, sending a suspicious look over at the two future Paladins still chatting forlornly to the side. It was hard for her to read him a lot of the time but she would guess he looked almost like he pitied them before he, too, followed the others.

With a soft sigh, Allura moved out the door as well. Shiro and Coran were behind her, gossiping (Coran) about the recent turn of events. However, she wasn't going for the dining room, which was evident when she turned a corner that had the two men with her stuttering to a surprised halt.

"Princess?" Shiro started. She turned to them almost apologetically.

"I'll be in the main deck plotting our next warp. Callie's teammates could be in danger. I'll be down soon." She waved them off, Coran frowning at her, but she turned and made her way briskly down the hall. She didn't hear any footsteps behind her so she assumed they had done as she had asked.

When she was alone on the deck, Allura took the moment to close her eyes and rub the pink scales high on her cheeks. She was getting a headache. Battling an evil Emperor and dealing with the genocide of her people was hard enough, but this?

It... implied motherhood. When Callie had first told his story Allura had been sympathetic but also laughably skeptical. Maybe even more so than Keith or Pidge had been. She could spot the loophole in his story the first time he told it: There needed to be Altean Royalty to power the ship and the Lions. Only her quintessence, or that of her father or her children, shared the unique ability to bond and resonate with other quintessence.

If it was really a future where all of them were dead, that would have left the Lions without someone to bond them to form Voltron, or even man the controls of the ship.

But.... those Lions weren't bonded to her anymore. Either they had found another Altean royal, which Allura doubted, or she had birthed a child. Which... she somehow doubted more even if it was the most logical. The idea of carrying a child to full term was horrifying in of itself, not to mention the terrible taste it left in her mouth to do so while Zarkon was still alive.

Allura didn't want Zarkon to take her apparent child's mother from them like he did her own father but just that had happened. She had most likely orphaned someone. Her hand shook as she pressed harder on the scales, hoping to keep tears at bay.

The only thing that kept the tightness from Allura's chest was that she had things to do. She needed to quash these feelings down for later. Right now there could be Paladins dying for no reason, their only hope of defeating Zarkon for good. What could they do if they had two Voltrons? Change the future, she hoped.

Pulling away from the door, a star map was pulled up around her with a twitch of her fingers. Allura overlaid the data that Pidge had provided over top of it, pulling up three brightly shining green dots and two dull gray. The next closest one to where they were at was only a short warp, but the last two were farther out and in much more dangerous territory. The farthest one was near the heart of where the Galra based in this galaxy. Allura could only hope whoever landed there had the sense to stay away or at least made it somewhere safe.

Now the only problem was figuring if they should go to the next closest or not. The second closest would take longer to get to but it was in a relative safe zone. The closest one looked like it landed right in the middle of a pocket of Galra controlled planets. Slightly easier to avoid detection than the farthest since she didn't have many records of patrols flying that way often.

The door slid open and Allura glanced up to find Shiro standing there. He gave a sheepish smile before walking over to her. He had two bowls of whatever concoction that Hunk had made this morning, one of which he offered to her.

"I know you're busy, but a Princess has to eat, too." He gave one of those soft smiles that Shiro liked to use with the others, friendly but with a slightly underlying tease. Allura couldn't help but smile back as she took a hesitant bite. She was surprised and pleased that it tasted vaguely of Palanapa Mash.

"Thank you, Shiro." They stood in silence and stared at the map as they both took slow bites. Shiro muttered something about a 'peachcobblur', whatever that might have been. She wasn't really in the mood to talk after her earlier realization.

"Are you okay?" Ah, there it was. Shiro was often trying to shoulder the worries of everyone around him. The 'I'm fine' sat heavy on her tongue but she couldn't make herself speak it. It felt too much like a lie. That didn't mean she wanted to give the whole truth, though.

"Did you leave anyone behind on earth, Shiro?" Was what Allura said instead, deflecting his question with one of her own. A few ticks passed with nothing but the him of the castle around them before the princess glanced over. Shiro was studying the star map closely but Allura could tell he wasn't actually seeing it.

"S-sorry. That was impolite of me to ask." Guilt rose in her chest. Shiro rarely talked about earth or his life on it. Most of what Allura knew about him from before Voltron and being captured by the Galra came from second hand sources: Hunk was quite the gossip.

"It's fine." Shiro didn't look fine but he waved her off anyway. Another smile tugged at his lips, this one small and sad. "My mother and brother are back on earth. At least... before Kerberos."

"You have a brother?" Allura pressed as gingerly as she could. If Shiro was willing to talk she would let him while he had the chance. There was no reason for him to shoulder the weight of the world alone.

"Yes. He's my twin. His name's Akira." Shiro sighed and his gaze was faraway, nostalgic. "He used to catch beetles when we would visit our grandparents, then chase me around all day. I was scared of them when I was little. Had this idea they would pinch my fingers off."

Allura felt herself give a soft laugh. It was hard to image the muscular, imposing man next to her being afraid of much. She wasn't sure what earth beetles were like, but if they were anything like Altean ones the idea was silly.

They fell into a comfortable silence after that. Shiro was probably thinking of his family. Allura allowed herself to reminisce about her own multiple younger siblings, now nothing more than dust and memories. It was bitter to think she would never see them again, but thinking of their antics was nice.

The door slid open with a soft hiss and in came Hunk, Pidge balanced on his shoulders. The Green Paladin gave a lazy Earth salute to her and Shiro before Hunk flopped dropped them on their chair. This was followed by some commotion, Lance entering and talking animatedly to, of all people, Hissi. Keith followed behind, careful of the massive lizard's tail.

"Yes, yes, you see and understand. Blue is obviously the best of the Lions. So sweet and kind." Hissi followed Lance to his seat, leaning against it when the human sat down. "She does this cute thing in my head some times. Like a 'growlpurrgrowl'. Does she do that to you?"

"Yeah, like, that's the cutest?! I've _tried_ to tell Hunk, but he just doesn't understand!" Lance pressed a hand to his chest and seemed delighted with the alien before him. Allura vaguely wondered if the two of them would have gotten along with Qest. A nagging feeling told her that, yes, they would have, and with possibly disastrous results. If this Blue Paladin was anything like Qest had been or Lance was now, they were all in for trouble.

"Is Callie not coming?" Pidge piped up over top of their conversation, cutting off something that Lance was rambling about and earning her a sharp look from the Blue Paladin. It was Hissi that replied, shaking his head.

"I shooed Callie off to nap. He was almost sleeping in his ingestible nutrients."

"Really? He seemed fine to me." Hunk frowned, but Hissi shook his head again quickly. The tip of his tail twitched upwards.

"It is very hard to tell with Callie. He hides a lot of worry. I've just known him a long time." Hissi preened, proud of that, but then he looked away from Hunk and to Allura. "We are going to save another of my friends? Blue and I will assist in any way we can."

"Yes," Allura started, using this as her lead in. She moved the stars she had been looking at so her Paladins could see it, enlarging it. "We'll need to pick where. I've narrowed it down to here or here." She zoomed in on the closest two energy readings.

"Their are trade offs and advantages to both. This one is closer to us but will take us close to potential threats. This one will take a little longer for us to arrive at, but it's in relatively peaceful space. What are your thoughts?"

"We should go, like, to the easiest one first, right? We save them, then we have another lion on our side, and it's easier to save the next guy. Easy peasy lemon cheesy." Hunk clapped his hands together and nodded.

"I dunno, we should get the closer one first. What if they've been captured? Like, we could go rescue this guy, come back for this one, but they've got captured and we don't have a way to track them!" Pidge leaned in to get a closer look at the map but their mind was made up.

"Keith?" Allura spoke up, the Red Paladin glanced up but shook his head.

"I don't have anything to add. I'll go wherever you all decide." No help there.

"Shiro?"

"This is a tough call, Princess. Either way we go we could be putting someone in danger. What about you, Hissi? Ideas?"

The lizard alien was staring hard at the five dots in the air. His expression looked almost pinched; the translators did a good job at trying to decipher body language, but there was only so much they could do.

"This is... all of them?" He pointed to the first two, grayed out lights. "That was Callie, this one myself. There are only three more?"

"That's all I picked up when did my scan. Isn't that everyone? Five lions?" Pidge spoke up again, brow raised. Hissi stood up straight and placed his arms behind his back, stiff and soldier-like."

"... no. The castle breached the rift we made, as well. Someone did not make it."

There was silence as everyone digested this. Hissi's tail lifted and wrapped around his middle, Allura's translator making her see it as a sign of sorrow and vulnerability.

"I think I know what to do." It was Lance who broke the quiet, standing up suddenly and approaching the map until he was standing next to the dots, Lance tapped at the air around them.

"We're here right now, right?" Lance motioned to where the castle was currently flying. "Instead of warping here or here," Lance pointed to both of the dots. "Warp us _here_." He pointed to a point between the two dots, but not perfectly so. "It's about as far away from where we are now to the closest one."

"Lance, that's not getting us anywhere. Then we won't rescue anyone." Keith snapped at him, crossing his arms. Lance scoffed and rolled his eyes.

"Oh, sorry, you have a better idea? Let me finish!" Lance bit back, then he went back to his explanation. "We have _six_ working Lions on the ship right now. After we warp, Hissi and someone else go for the one in dead space. They shouldn't need any more than two Lions, right? Then you guys fly the rest of the way to the other one in the Castle, and drop in to get whoevers there!" Lance stepped back, pleased with himself. "So, like not as quick as we like and whoever goes with Hissi will have to fly a while, but it won't take us as long as saving one at a time."

"What if we need Voltron?" Coran was the one who asked that, causing Lance to deflate some. A small cacophony of noise started around them as everyone else started to out their two cents in. Shiro tried to reign everyone one. Allura... thought about Lance's plan.

"No, this is perfect." Her voice cut through the din and quieted everyone. "After everyone is back on the ship, we can pick the three up along the way to the last stop. Lance, this is brilliant."

Lance beamed, all the way up to his ears flushing with color as he took the compliment. It was easy to forget that Lance could have his moments for how silly he liked to act.

"Lance, you go with Hissi. Since both your Lions can keep up with the other, you won't have to worry about one having to slow down so the other can keep up. Now... everyone, go rest. We'll warp in a few hours."

Everyone hopped from their seats or moved to the door. Hunk made his way over to a still bright red Lance and clapped him on the back before he led him out. Soon enough it was just her and Coran left. He needed to do configurations for the next warp and she was mostly just killing time.

"Do you really think this is a good idea, Princess?"

"We don't have much choice, Coran. I would prefer to be able to form Voltron, but this plan gives us the highest chance of saving whoever is out there."

"Of course, of course. Why, this reminds me of when Talanuy got themself separated from us for a week." Coran sighed and chuckled. "Your father wanted to choke them when they finally turned up."

"Hadn't they been trapped in a Vulnatau romance ceremony? I'm surprised they made it back." Allura let herself smile a little, thinking of the last set of Paladins. They had been good people. She was very young when that had happened.

"Yes, almost eaten whole by a Queen no less! They never did tend to wander off as much after that."

Allura pursed her lips when it was quiet again. Coran was still tinkering with the control panel, humming to himself as he made his adjustments. The thoughts from earlier were weighing heavy on her mind again.

"I can't believe we failed." She started, gentle at first. Coran stopped his typing but didn't glance back at her. "We... failed the universe. Zarkon won. What did we do wrong?"

"Princess..." Allura covered her face quickly, a sudden wash of tears spilling hot down her cheeks. The fact that Callie and Hissi, or any of that future team, was here in the _right now_ meant that they had been failures. Despite having the ultimate weapon to defend themselves, they still hadn't been strong enough. All the pain she had went through, out her team through, had been for nothing. They lost.

Coran wrapped his arms around Allura, squeezing her side as he pet her hair. She pressed her face against his shoulder and let the fabric of her advisor's clothes soak up her crying. All of this work had been for nothing.

She just hoped they could change that. This was their second chance.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No lion saving this time, but the next two chapters are pretty much dedicated to it. Remember it's a Lance chapter next, so we'll be seeing how him and Hissi handle saving someone next time.
> 
> If you spot any glaring errors, please tell me. This is all written and posted from my phone, so sometimes it's hard to notice.
> 
> Remember my tumblr is ancientnapdragon.tumblr.com if you wanna chat. I wild hyperlink that but... mobile and I'm lazy.


End file.
